Prototype
by FlikFreak
Summary: AU. Roxas and his friends decide to explore the old mansion at the edge of Twilight Town, curious to see if any of the rumors surrounding it are true. What they find in the white room in the basement, however, may bring forth more questions than answers.
1. Exploring The Mansion

WHY AM I DOING THIS TO MYSELF. I already have tons of stories that need completing and what comes along? MORE PLOT BUNNIES. XD Well, it's not entirely a bad thing...I'll finish those other ones eventually!

This is also my first delve into the mystery genre. If I'm doing it wrong, feel free to let me know XD

...this is also my first fic where Roxas is the main character. Wow, a lot of firsts in this one.

**Prototype**

**By FlikFreak**

**Chapter One: Exploring the Mansion  
**

The day had started normally enough. The four of them eating sea salt ice cream in the Usual Spot. It was Roxas's first summer vacation since he had moved to Twilight Town, but unfortunately for him it was beginning to be quite dull. While this was mainly due to the lack of things to do in town, the weather was also to blame: it was far too hot to do most things, and the train line wouldn't be up and running until a day or two from then. Thus, in order to stray from their boredom, they rambled amongst themselves about random topics.

Hayner, the ever-impulsive one with an attitude problem to boot, was anticipating the Struggle tournament in a few days. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that he was carefully planning his revenge on Seifer (whether it would work or not, however, was a mystery to all). Olette was no doubt thinking about summer homework, studying, or shopping, but was of course no doubt content to join the boys' conversations. Roxas remained quiet for the most part, pitching in a thought when he came with one like he always did. Hayner once admonished him for being so quiet all the time, claiming that being new didn't give him an excuse, but later they all just accepted that Roxas didn't talk quite as much as the rest of them.

Of all of them, Pence was the one that started the talk that made their summer more eventful. While he was laid-back and easygoing, Pence was also more intelligent than he seemed. Not only was he a computer genius, but he also made some rather good grades in school as well…which never failed to surprise Olette, whom was constantly wondering when he ever had time to study between hanging out with them and going to school or doing chores. The thing about Pence, though, was that he had a thing for the supernatural. If you ever wanted to know anything and everything about any urban legend, Pence would know.

And it was one of those urban legends that started the whole mess.

"Have you heard those rumors about the old mansion?"

"_Everyone_ knows about those rumors, Pence," Hayner groaned, proceeding to thoroughly ignore his friend.

"I haven't," Roxas pointed out, nibbling on the corner of his ice cream.

Pence looked all too happy to explain, and put on his usual ghost-story-telling face. "Well, this well-known scientist used to live there. Really smart guy, invented a lot of stuff. But then something happened at his house, and he mysteriously vanished. No one's lived in the house since."

"What happened to him?"

"No one knows," Pence replied. "People suspect a lot of things. An experiment gone wrong, murder, suicide…all sorts of stuff, but no one's even gone inside to see. The authorities won't even go near that place."

"How come?" Roxas asked.

"No one knows that, either. When people ask, they refuse to answer."

"Does _anyone_ know what happened to that place?" Olette asked.

Pence shrugged. "Not a one."

"That's it!"

All heads turned to Hayner. "What's it?" Pence asked.

"If no one knows what went on in there," Hayner began, "That means no one's been there, right?"

Pence and Olette exchanged glances with Roxas. Their thoughts were shared ones: _"Oh boy, here he goes again."_

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I sure could use some excitement. Today was getting really boring anyway. We're going to go check that place out."

"Do you even know how to get there?" Roxas asked dryly.

Hayner crossed his arms. "Of course not; that's why you're all coming along."

Roxas suppressed a groan. Why did he get the feeling he wasn't getting a choice in this?

Several minutes later saw them heading down Market Street to Tram Common. The entrance to the forest consisted of a large hole in the brick wall past the Sandlot entrance (Pence explained that after Tram Common was rebuilt, the hole had appeared and no one bothered to repair it), and the woods beyond were rather dark, even for midday.

The mansion itself was enormous. The windows were surprisingly intact, but several pillars lining the front walkway past the wrought-iron gate had crumbled. Vines were overgrowing the walls, and the grass reached up past their ankles, making walking a bit awkward.

"This is it?" Hayner deadpanned.

"This is it," Pence replied.

Roxas gulped nervously as the rest of the group headed forward. "Guys? Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"What's wrong?" Hayner teased. "You _scared_, Roxas?"

Roxas glared at his friend. "Of course not! I'm just… Well, look at it. The place is obviously falling apart. What if it falls in on top of us?"

"It shouldn't be that bad," Pence pointed out. "This place isn't that old."

"You're only here so you can see if there are really ghosts or not," Roxas mumbled, but he followed them anyway.

Hayner shoved the iron gateway open and the group started forward. After grabbing the front door and twisting the knob, he paused. "Funny. The front door's unlocked."

"Whoever owned this place sure wasn't that concerned about burglars," Olette commented, "Or vandals."

Roxas begged to differ. As they stepped into the house, he felt chills running up his spine. Something was definitely off about this place…

* * *

**Security scan commencing…**

**Scan complete. Intruders detected.**

**Hibernation mode terminated.**

**Possible match found. Analyzing…**

* * *

If the previous owner wasn't worried about vandals invading his house, he'd regret it now if he saw what had happened…that, or the place really _was_ falling apart. Various displays that had been in the ballroom had all been smashed, their pieces scattered across the room. Only one was left standing, and the glass case was shattered, the display object itself crumbling.

Numerous paintings lined the walls, several torched or ripped. There were two statues near the back of the room between the dual staircases, between them a glass door to the garden outside (which was also slowly becoming overgrown). The chandeliers were, thankfully, still in one piece.

"Defintitely vandals," Pence mumbled, pulling out his camera and snapping a photo of the ruined display.

"I don't think so," Olette replied. "Come over here."

In a small room nearby was what was possibly some sort of dining room. A chair still remained, along with a cabinet or two, but the chandelier in this room had crushed the table underneath it. Roxas's eyes widened and he stepped back. "Whoa…it had to take something huge to smash _that_."

"I doubt a chandelier would have done the job, either," Pence added. "That table looks pretty sturdy…"

They left the room as quickly as they had entered it, deciding not to stick around to see if whatever broke the table decided to test its strength on them. They made their way up the stairs and to the south end of the house, pushing open one of the doors. The room within was entirely white, full of crayon drawings that were strewn on the table, on the walls next to the cabinet and curtained window, and on the floor. They were all exceedingly difficult to make out, and Roxas gave up after trying to discern a black-and-yellow object standing next to a…something.

Hayner sniffed. "Someone obviously needed an art class."

"This room is pretty different," Olette commented. "The rest of this place is in dull red and gold colors…this room is white."

Pence fingered the glass roses in the vase on the table. "Yeah. It makes no sense."

"It probably did to the owner," Roxas pointed out, "Whoever he was."

"Are we though here?" Hayner grumbled impatiently. "There's still one more room to check out."

"You're the one who was so eager to come here," Olette scolded him. "No need to be so impatient."

They ended up leaving anyway, but when they reached the other room, it was locked. Hayner stared at the doorknob like it was the cause of all his problems. "You've got to be kidding me," he hissed.

"That's weird," Olette observed. "Why lock this door and not any of the others?"

Pence grinned mischievously, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out his library card. "Wanna find out?"

Ironically, the room that Pence unlocked with his library card was a library. Numerous books of varying subjects lined the walls, and the room itself was, surprisingly, not all that musty. The window, however, was filthy, but this didn't surprise Roxas; the place had been abandoned for years.

"They wanted to protect their library?" Hayner deadpanned. "That's pretty dull."

"These are some weird books though," Olette pointed out. "I've seen this one in the library at school, it's about the War of the Chasers."

"And look at this one!" Pence said excitedly, pulling one off the shelf. "'Door To Light: A Mystery Unexplained.' Huh. Wonder what that's about."

Roxas scanned the bookshelves, but the subjects were far beyond his understanding. Instead, he directed his attention to the table on the opposite side of the room. On it was a small vase and a few books. The title of one book caught his eye: 'Kingdom Hearts: Myth or Reality?' He was about to pick it up when the floor began to shift underneath him, knocking him flat on his rear. "Wha-"

"Roxas! Move!"

Scrambling to his feet, Roxas raced off of the tiled floor and back off of the carpet just in time for the floor to slide away right from beneath him, revealing something none of them had expected.

"How old did you say this place was again, Pence?" Roxas stuttered.

"Apparently not as old as I first suspected," Pence replied.

There, beneath where the floor had been, was a staircase down to what could only be a basement. It hardly seemed like part of the house at all; the reds became blues and greens. And the structure certainly seemed more modern than the rest of the mansion.

Roxas felt a chill go up his spine as he stared downward. "Guys…should we go down there?"

"Of course!" Hayner replied, already heading down the steps. "How else are we going to get to the bottom of this mystery?"

"You're certainly into this," Olette commented, grinning.

Hayner crossed his arms. "Not my fault today's been dull before now. Come on!"

* * *

**Analysis complete. Match confirmed.**

**Commencing communication attempt…**

* * *

"Now _that_ is weird," Pence said. "This place is super old; I'd never expect to find a computer here."

"Strange," Olette muttered.

Hayner nodded. "You said it."

Roxas remained quiet. The screens had various graphs and lists of data. On one screen was a wireframe scan, accompanied by several graphs. Glancing on the back wall, Roxas noticed a few more screens, all with even _more_ data. What was all this?

"Pence, should you really be messing with it?"

Snapping out of his daze, Roxas turned around to see Pence sitting in the computer seat and messing with a few of the screens, looking completely at home. "Relax; the program looks relatively simple. Hmm…" He tapped a few of the screens. "It looks like it's monitoring some sort of prototype of something. This one looks like the house's defense system…"

"This house has a defense system?" Roxas echoed.

Pence shrugged. "Yeah, but the log doesn't state anything being launched yet. Right now it's attempting communications with something I don't recognize most of this…"

A low whir caught Roxas's attention and he turned toward a door on the far end of the room, which led down a long hallway. Tilting his head, he approached it. "Hey, guys…what do you think is in here?"

Hayner, Pence and Olette glanced up from staring at the computer. "You find something?"

Roxas shook his head. "It's just an old hallway, but I think there's something down it." He squinted. "I can see a few lights."

"Well, what're we waiting for?"

The hallway turned out to actually be a large room, and the real hallway was on the other side of it. The wall was lined with several white, bud-like pods two times larger than the average human being. All seemed empty, but the power was turned on. "What are these?" he mumbled.

"Who knows?" Hayner replied, shaking his head. "This place gives me the creeps."

Olette swallowed nervously. "Maybe we should turn back. This place gives me the creeps."

A door at the end of the hallway opened, sliding upward. "Doors to _not_ open by themselves," Roxas said in a near-whisper, eyes wide. "I'm with Olette on this one."

"What's wrong?" Hayner teased, crossing his arms. "Scared?"

"Of course not!"

"Then come see what's inside!"

"…fine."

The room on the other side of the door lit up the moment they stepped in. It was entirely white, just like the white room before in the upstairs part of the mansion. This room, however, was slightly different; for one, it was hard to make out the walls and ceiling. In the center of the room was an enormous pod, much like the ones that were in the hallway, and much wider. A complicated apparatus and system of wires connected it with the ceiling.

"What _is_ that?" Roxas asked no one in particular.

"Looks like an artichoke," Pence commented.

Roxas would have rolled his eyes in any other situation. Of course Pence would reference food, even at a time like this. "We know what it _looks_ like, but what _is_ it?"

"Some kind of container, maybe?" Olette suggested.

Pence quirked an eyebrow. "I don't get it. Most of the mansion is pretty dull and run-down. Then there was that one white room upstairs, and the computer lab, too…they're not run down at all. Then we get here, and there's this huge…thing. I've got a funny feeling about all this."

"Whatever," Hayner grumbled loudly. "This place is weird, but that's about it. I'm outta here."

As the blonde turned to leave, Olette sighed. "He's right. We found some weird stuff, but this place isn't haunted, just old. Besides, it's getting late."

Sighing in defeat, Roxas gave the giant container one last look before turning to follow his friends out. He hated to admit it, but they were right. As hyped and spooky as this place was, it was just some really weirdly built house.

_Who's there…?_

Roxas froze. The voice had spoken directly to his mind, but it was almost the same as hearing it with his ears. He shuddered, feeling a sudden cold chill, and rubbed his arms. "Did you guys hear that?"

Olette glanced at him awkwardly. "Hear what?"

"That voice!"

"What voice?"

Hayner stared at Roxas. "What're you talking about?"

_Is someone out there…?_

"There it is again!" Roxas exclaimed. "Didn't you hear it?"

Pence rolled his eyes. "He's stalling."

Roxas was taken aback. "I'm not stalling! It's really-"

Hayner's trademark grumpy face emerged, silencing his friend. "Roxas, there's no voice. If you want to check out the rest of the mansion _that_ badly, you could just say so."

"But I heard it! Didn't you?"

"Roxas…"

It was a warning. Sighing, Roxas let his shoulders droop and followed his friends out. The voice did not speak to him as he exited.

* * *

**Communication attempt successful. Commencing area scan…**

**Scan complete. Target located. Launching defense mechanism.**

**Error. Security system override. Launch failure.**

**System anomaly detected. Failure to regulate prototype.**

**Initiating Emergency Shutdown procedure…**

**Error. Complete system override.**

**Emergency Shutdown failure.**

**Prototype Control System failure.**

**Warning.**

**Warning.**

**Warning.**

* * *

That night, Roxas found sleep difficult. The voice plagued him; how could he have heard it and not his friends? Perhaps they were right; maybe he was only hearing things.

_Are you still there?_

Roxas sat up in bed so fast his vision went fuzzy for a moment. The voice again?! But how? It was a lot fainter this time, nearly impossible to make out, but he could still 'hear' it. Rubbing his eyes, Roxas stared out the window. "What's going on?" he muttered

_Who are you?_

That did it. Quietly, Roxas pulled on some socks and shoes, grabbed a flashlight, and snuck out of his room and down the stairs, careful not to wake his parents, and out the door.

It was rather awkward to traverse the streets of Twilight Town in his pajamas, but Roxas had no complaints this time. No one was really awake at this hour aside from partying college students, and they weren't in this part of town (for once, Roxas was thankful that his parents were so adamant about living in the 'good part' of town, even if it meant being farther away from Hayner). He avoided Market Street, instead heading down the alleyway and through the sandlot to get to Tram Common. Shortly after passing through, he made his way to the familiar crack in the wall and flicked on his flashlight as he entered the forest.

The chirping of the crickets was a lot louder at night, as was the sound of Roxas's every footstep crunching the grass and occasional twigs underneath. There was no breeze, no wind, no nothing. The path was difficult to follow, and Roxas wondered how he stayed on it without straying into the deeper parts of the woods.

The mansion seemed far more intimidating at night. He paused, gazing through the metal bars of the gate before swallowing and pushing them open. The rusted hinges creaked in protest, causing Roxas to wince before he passed through.

There were no lamps on inside, and Roxas had to do his best to watch his footing. "I know I last heard that voice here," he muttered, but his words echoed off the walls anyway.

_Who is it?_

Again, there it was. Roxas waved his flashlight about, eyes scanning carefully for anyone else that might have been there. No ghosts, no zombies…just an old, run-down house. A _creepy_ old run-down house. Even this didn't change the fact that there was a voice, however. "Is someone in here?" He called, stepping forward.

_Who are you?_

Whoever this voice was, it sure seemed curious about Roxas. Taking a deep breath, Roxas headed up the stairwell and toward the library. He was only half-relieved that the path to the basement laboratory remained, and he followed it downward to the computer room.

The screens remained the same, still monitoring some sort of prototype. Ignoring them, Roxas continued through the halls and into the white room. It was a dizzying difference from the dark mansion, especially since the lighting didn't seem to change. The pod remained in its same position as it had been before, but there was something different from before that he couldn't discern.

Swallowing, Roxas glanced around the room. "Is someone in here?"

As though to answer him, a loud click sounded and the pod in the center of the room flashed. Then, a loud whirring began as large, petal-like shapes lowered from the pod's exterior. It was opening.

Roxas took a few steps back to make way, and nearly dropped his flashlight when he saw what was inside of the pod. There, floating peacefully and connected to various wires, was a boy.


	2. The Boy In The Basement

W-Wow, guys. I didn't expect the first chapter to get such a positive response. I was scared to put up chapter two because I wasn't sure if the quality would be up to snuff in comparison. Nonetheless, here it is. I give you...chapter two!

**Prototype**

**By FlikFreak**

**Chapter Two: The Boy in the Basement**

* * *

Roxas couldn't believe his eyes. According to Pence, no one had lived in this house for ages. How was it that there was a living, breathing human being here? Well, at the moment he was asleep, but it was close enough.

The boy had to be around his age. He just floated there, eyes closed, arms at his sides. His light brown hair (which probably defied at least three laws of physics, judging by how spiky it was) bobbed a little as he hovered in place. Overall, the boy was also rather thin. His outfit was probably the strangest thing Roxas had ever seen, a red jumpsuit acting as a sleeveless shirt and a pair of shorts, a hooded short-sleeved jacket, oversized yellow shoes, and white, fingerless gloves. There was also a blue belt with a long chain dangling off of it in a loop, and a crown pendant on a chain around his neck. If this boy was from the past, he hid it well by appearance alone.

Stepping forward, Roxas noticed the wires connected to the boy's head, neck, back, and chest. There were various other connections as well. What was this boy here for?

_Is someone there?_

The voice again. Roxas swallowed, looking around the room for the source. "Um…yeah."

_Who are you?_

It couldn't hurt to answer, he figured. "My name's Roxas. Who're you?"

There was no answer. Roxas felt his gaze become drawn to the opened pod again, where the boy floated peacefully. There was a hiss, and the wires fell, leaving the boy to float on his own. Deep blue eyes began to open, still droopy from sleep. He opened his mouth, possibly to speak, but didn't say a word.

They stared at each other for a few silent minutes, in awe of one another. Roxas could hardly believe what he was seeing; it was so surreal. This boy was not only alive, but waking up from who knows how long a nap. He couldn't move if he wanted to; he simply stared in awe.

Finally, the mysterious boy stretched, yawning silently and flexing his fingers a few times, his eyelids still drooping lazily.

_So tired…_

Roxas then had a startling realization that it was the boy speaking to him. Gulping nervously, he backed away. "Y-You…you're…"

The boy tilted his head, eyes opening a bit more and causing him to look more awake. He slowly floated to the floor of the pod, landing with a near-silent _tap_. Roxas stepped back a few inches, but the boy only walked toward him, head tilted curiously. After a few moments, Roxas spun on his heels and took off running.

_Wait!_

He ignored the voice for favor of fleeing. The halls began to flash red, and a sound akin to an alarm began to go off. Roxas was vaguely aware of a set of footsteps following him, but he kept running through the halls and up the stairs to the library. The entire building seemed to be shaking – either that or it was just him. He was just beginning to head down the stairs when he tripped, falling down head-first. His skull hit the platform mid-way to the first level as he fell.

The last thing he noticed before he blacked out was a pair of blue eyes staring back at him.

* * *

_There were two men standing in the dining room. Roxas couldn't make them out. He peeked out from behind the doorframe, careful to eavesdrop without being noticed._

"_It's like a sponge," one of them said. "It's sucking up all of the energy in the house."_

"_I realize that," the older of the two replied. "It seems my calculations were incorrect. We may have to quarantine it."_

"_Quarantine…" the younger one echoed, one hand balling into a fist. "But wouldn't that mean…?"_

"_Yes. Just be glad it's the energy in the house that's being taken and not…" the man paused, glancing in Roxas's direction._

_Roxas gasped, backing away. The younger of the two men started forward, and he felt only fear…_

* * *

The sunlight blinded Roxas when he woke up late the next day. Groaning, he glanced at his clock. Ten in the morning…yep. Time to get up. Yawning, he stretched and sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and dully noting the pain in the back of his head.

Unwillingly, his thoughts drifted to the night before, and a slight panic set in. He had been in that room with the pod…staring at that boy. Why had he been wired up and confined like that? Was that voice in Roxas's mind really his? Was it really the right thing to leave him there? And just who was he, anyway?

Shaking his head a bit to clear his mind, Roxas got himself dressed and headed downstairs, grabbing a pouch of poptarts for breakfast as he went. He ripped open the top as he walked, breaking off the corner and popping it in his mouth.

"Hey, chicken wuss."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Oh, great, not _now_…"

Seifer, Rai and Fuu stood on a street corner, eyeing Roxas like he was the bringer of the plague. It wasn't surprising to the blonde – he got that look regularly from them. The leader, Seifer, crossed his arms and sneered. "Word on the street has it that you went to the old, haunted mansion in the middle of the night," he said.

"That place is off-limits, y'know?" Rai added.

Fuu's gaze was as stony as ever. "Forbidden."

Roxas scowled. "So?"

"Why were you there?" Seifer demanded casually. "Get dared by some little kid to see if there really were ghosts in there?"

No. Actually, he went into the basement, found out some kid around his age was locked up in some pod, and then took off running when the said kid woke up, only to be knocked out when he fell down the stairs. Oh, and then he somehow woke up in his own bed the next morning with no idea how the hell he got there. "None of your business."

Seifer opened his mouth to talk again when the sound of heavy footsteps approaching nearby cut him off. There, standing with his fists clenched and his eyes narrowed, was the boy from last night. Roxas's eyes widened. So he _was_ real!

"This your new bodyguard, chicken wuss?" Seifer taunted. "Looks a bit scrawny to do the job if you ask me."

Obviously insulted by this, the boy lowered himself into a fighting stance. Seifer seemed mildly amused at this. "You picking a fight with me?"

The boy exhaled through his teeth, producing a mild hissing sound, and sneered. He gave a short, worried glance over to Roxas, causing the blonde to do a double-take and step backward.

"Let's get out of here," Seifer grumbled, turning away. "I don't feel like picking on freshmeat first thing in the morning. I'll deal with you later."

With that, the three walked away toward the sandlot. Roxas waited until they were safely out of earshot to speak again. "What was that all about?"

The boy, whose gaze had softened again, gave Roxas a concerned look.

_They were picking on you, weren't they?_

The voice again. So it _was_ that kid. Roxas rubbed his head. "Er…could you speak with your voice, please? This is really awkward."

_I can't._

…well, this was an interesting development. "You can't?" Roxas echoed. "Why not?"

_I don't have a voice._

"Oh." Roxas stared at the ground. "…I'm sorry."

The boy shook his head, smiling. _It's okay. I'll get used to it._

Roxas tilted his head. "You mean…you had a voice before or something?"

_Probably. I don't remember anything before I woke up and saw you. I don't even know who or where I am. Only thing I know for sure is my name._

"Just who are you anyway?"

_I told you, I don't know. If you want my name though, it's Sora._

"Sora, then," Roxas began. As quickly as he started, however, he stopped. Where was he supposed to begin? He had far too many questions for this boy, and it was obvious that the boy had questions of his own. It also struck him that he was taking this so casually; maybe because he couldn't think of any other way to handle it. "Um…what're you doing out here? Last time I saw you, you were still in the mansion."

_You took off running. I was worried, so I followed you._

Roxas rubbed his neck. "That's the thing. I remember going down the steps, and I think I tripped or something…"

_You hit your head pretty bad. I patched up what I could and brought you back here._

It took a few seconds to sink in, but when it did Roxas's jaw dropped. "You…you _what_?!"

Sora looked taken aback, waving his hands in front of him defensively. _I-I couldn't just leave you there! You'd get in trouble, right? Besides, you got pretty hurt._

Anxious, Roxas began to back away. "Well, thanks, but-"

_Don't go!_ Sora cried, reaching forward. _You're the only one that's managed to wake me up! I…_

He paused. There was a sudden heaviness in the air, or some kind of pull. He couldn't quite make it out, but it was somewhat depressing for some reason. He sighed. "Well, thanks for getting me home, but…I barely know you aside from your name."

"Um…Roxas?"

Roxas turned around hesitantly to see Pence standing behind him. "Um…hey, Pence. What's up?"

Pence quirked an eyebrow, approaching. "You were talking to yourself," he replied. "Or, well, you were talking and no one was talking back to you."

At this, Roxas turned back to glance at Sora. "You were talking to me, weren't you?"

_He can't hear me,_ Sora replied, shrugging. _Only you can._

Roxas felt his shoulders droop. "Oh…I see."

"Roxas?"

He turned back to his friend. "It's…a long story."

Pence waved it off. "You can tell me later. Who is this? A friend of yours? Relative, maybe?"

"His name's Sora," Roxas explained. "He…he was in the old mansion."

"But no one was in there when we went," Pence replied, blinking.

Roxas shook his head. "Not the first time," he began. "I couldn't sleep because that voice kept bothering me, so I got up late last night and went back alone. Remember that room in the basement? The one with the big pod in it?"

Pence nodded. "Yeah." A pause. "…that's where you said you were hearing the voice."

"Exactly. That's where Sora was. That voice was him."

"You serious?" Pence exclaimed. "He's like, telepathic or something?"

Roxas rubbed his head. "Something like that. He says he can only talk to me though."

Pence seemed more fascinated by this development than startled. "Wow. You two must have some sort of psychic connection or something."

Sora scratched his head. _If we do, I'd sure like to know about it. I'm just as confused as you are._

"Are Hayner and the others here yet?" Roxas asked. "There's a lot of stuff I wanna explain, but I want to tell everyone at once."

"Yeah," Pence replied. "They're at the Usual Spot right now."

_What's the Usual Spot?_ Sora asked, sending Roxas a confused look.

Roxas laughed. "You'll see," he replied, ignoring the strange glance from Pence. "Come on."

* * *

**Abnormal Prototype activity confirmed. Locating source…**

**Source identified. Scanning…**

**Scan complete. Source location confirmed.**

**Source analyzed. Threat level: high.**

**Requesting permission to quarantine…**

* * *

Introductions were awkward, but within a few short minutes Sora was welcomed among the group of friends. Hayner was still wary of Sora for a while, which wasn't helped since every one of Sora's comments had to be "translated" by Roxas, but he eventually waved it off and began acting a bit friendlier toward the strange boy.

Roxas went through the whole story: how he had woken up last night and gone to the mansion alone and found Sora in the pod. During the entire explanation, Sora remained silent, examining the three other people in the room with great interest (and earning a few looks in return), and only spoke up when the story came to how Roxas had returned home after being knocked out. Overall, the introduction was awkward and eerie, but Sora was accepted well enough for Roxas's taste.

"So, you don't know anything about your past?" Olette asked. When Sora shook his head, she bit her lip. "I'm sorry."

_It's not all that bad…just kind of irritating._

"He says he doesn't mind," Roxas repeated.

"That's definitely weird though," Pence commented. "Not knowing anything about yourself other than your name…"

_I'd like to know more, but I don't know where to start._

Roxas placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "He, uh…said he'd like to know more about himself. Where do you guys think we should look?"

"I doubt we'll find anything if we ask around town," Hayner stated blandly. "No one's lived in that mansion for _ages_, remember? If Sora was found in there, no one in town's gonna know him."

"Then how about the library?" Pence suggested enthusiastically. "We could start with his name and go from there."

"That sounds like an idea," Olette agreed. "Maybe we'll find out more about the mansion, too."

Hayner didn't seem too happy about the idea. "Aw, c'mon! I don't even wanna _think_ about setting foot in some boring library while we're still on summer vacation!"

"You don't _have_ to come," Roxas pointed out. "We're not really doing an assignment anyway. Besides, if you really want to you can always go read the comic books they have in the back."

To that, Hayner grudgingly agreed.

Olette held a hand up. "Hold it. I'm all for this library trip, but is Sora going to go with us?"

_Of course I am._

"Of course he is," Roxas said.

"Not on my watch," Olette protested. "Not dressed like_ that_, anyway. Look at those clothes! They're obviously a size or three too small for him."

Uh-oh. The boys exchanged glances while Sora looked down at his shorts fondly. Olette crossed her arms. "We're not going to the library until we get this kid a new wardrobe."

_Is this going to hurt?_ Sora asked, wincing and glancing at Roxas.

"Hopefully it won't," Roxas replied, not bothering to translate.

Olette wore a face of determination and stood upright. "Boys, _we_ are going _shopping_."

* * *

**Permission to quarantine grant—**_**KRRRSSSHHHH.**_

**Error. System override.**

**Permission to quarantine denied.**

**Scan failed. All safety functions disabled.**

**Warning. Assimilation imminent.**


	3. More Questions Than Answers

I-I felt bad for leaving you guys without an update for so long, but life is totally piled on top of me big time now. Sorry for slowness!

I originally wasn't going to end this chapter where it's at, but I thought it was an okay place to end.

**Prototype**

**By FlikFreak**

**Chapter Three: More Questions than Answers**

* * *

The group split up shortly after the decision to go shopping was made. Pence and Hayner headed for the Library while Olette took Sora with her to the shopping center in Tram Common, Roxas accompanying them for the main purpose of translating for Sora. It wasn't long before they found themselves at Jessie's clothing shop in Tram Common, where Sora very hesitantly followed them through the door.

_Are you sure about this?_ He asked.

"Just do what Olette tells you to and you'll be fine," Roxas assured him in a hushed voice.

Unfortunately, his voice wasn't hushed enough, and Olette spun on him, crossing her arms. "We're only buying him a new outfit, Roxas. If anyone sees him walking around like _that_, then-"

"Alright, alright, I get it."

The shop was bigger than Roxas had first expected. There was music playing from the speakers set on the roof, and rows of clothing lined the walls, hung off of racks, and were stuffed on shelves. The walls were still brick on the inside, and the floor had been laid over with tiles that were coming up in a few places. Roxas wrinkled his nose a little as he stepped over a section of the floor where some tiles had been ripped up. "You shop _here_?"

"It's not _that_ bad," Olette replied with a huff. "Sure, this place needs to get fixed up a tad, but it's the best clothing store in the Station Heights district."

_It really isn't all that bad, Roxas,_ Sora added. _You can't judge a book by its cover._

"Whose side are you on, Sora?" Roxas moaned.

Olette dragged Sora off to one of the sections of the back of the store and placed the mute boy in front of a mirror before crossing her arms. "Okay, I have to agree that red is a good color for you, Sora; but that outfit isn't stylish at _all_...plus it's about three sizes too small for you."

Sora blinked, glancing down at his shorts. Shrugging, he nodded in agreement.

"So here's what we'll do," Olette continued, clapping her hands together. "Getting you a new outfit is all good and well, but if it's not comfortable, you need to let me know, okay? There's no sense in getting you clothes you'll have to live with if you don't like how they feel. I'll go get a few outfits for you, so just wait here and I'll bring them all here." With that, she walked off.

In spite of Roxas's previous belief, the entire shopping trip only took thirty minutes. Olette went through the racks quickly, and traversed back and forth between the store and where Sora was. There were countless trips between the dressing room and mirror before they finally found a good ensemble for Sora, consisting of a blue-and red shirt, a black boodie, a pair of large black shorts, zip-up shoes, and gloves. The only thing that stayed the same was Sora's crown pendant, which he absolutely refused to remove, even after Olette's repeated attempts to convince him. In spite of this, Roxas noticed that Sora quite liked his new look.

After a quick run by the checkout, the three of them headed straight for the Station Heights library. Upon arriving at the second floor, they were promtly greeted by the sight of Pence frantically waving them over to the table he was at. Numerous old newspapers were spread out in front of him.

"Did you find something, Pence?" Olette asked.

Pence nodded, eyes wide. "I sure did!" he replied, pulling out one of the clippings from the pile he had found. "I was looking up some stuff about the mansion when I found this article. Take a look."

Roxas took it carefully and held it in front of him, noticing offhand that Olette and Sora were glancing over his shoulder.

_Nevras Mansion was determined as the source of a small-scale earthquake yesterday. Although unable to investigate the closed-off mansion closely, scientists have confirmed these readings._

_The earthquake left five injured, but was otherwise harmless._

_Nevras Mansion was the former home of well-known scientist and engineer Ansem The Wise, whom invented the tram system, developed cures for various illnesses, and donated generous amounts of money toward rebuilding Sunset Station after the Twilight War. He and his family have not been seen for several months and are presumed dead._

"Ansem the Wise lived _there_?" Olette breathed.

"According to this article he does" Pence shrugged. "Not surprising, really; he had a lot of money to build a house like that."

"Maybe one of his experiments or something caused the earthquake," Olette suggested.

"I doubt it," Pence replied, shaking his head. "It takes a lot more than an explosion to cause an earthquake."

Sora squinted his eyes. _Hang on. Look at the date of the article._

Roxas did. "It says April...wait, this article is ten years old!"

Pence nodded. "Yeah. That earthquake the article mentions is the same one that started the hole in the Tram Common wall when we were in elementary school."

_That sounds really familiar somehow,_ Sora mumbled.

"Really?" Roxas asked. "How? I thought you had no memories of your past."

Sora shrugged, sitting down lightly. _That's the problem. I don't...at least, I can't reach them right now. That earthquake article rings a bell, but I just can't place it...just like that scientist's name. I've heard of him before._

Understanding the brunette's plight, Roxas nodded and turned to Pence. "Who's this Ansem guy?" He asked. "We know he's a scientist, but I never knew he had a family."

"He didn't," Pence replied. "Not a real one, anyway. He adopted some kids from the orphanage."

_Maybe that Ansem guy will know who I am,_ Sora mused. _Where is he now?_

Roxas shrugged. "No one knows. He went missing ages ago."

_Oh... _Sora seemed to sulk a little. _Well, maybe we could look up more information about him. If we know more about him, maybe it'll lead to something._

"Yeah." Roxas turned to his friends. "Sora thinks we might be able to find something if we look up more stuff on Ansem the Wise."

Olette bit her lip. "There won't be much in here. He's not exactly a _historical_ figure; he only went missing pretty recently."

"We can always check out magazines and newspapers," Pence pointed out. "He _was_ famous, after all."

It was then that Hayner decided to show his face. The boy turned for the hall past the magazine shelf and quietly made his way to the group. "Find anything, Pence?"

"Yeah," Pence replied. "There's an article about the earthquake from ten years ago. You know, the one that opened up that hole?"

Hayner stared at Pence in disapointment. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"It was centered around the old mansion where Roxas found Sora," Pence explained. "We're going to look up more about Ansem the Wise and see if we find out anything else."

Roxas began counting on his fingers. "So far, we know that he was a rich scientist that cured diseases, invented the tram, donated money to rebuild tram common, adopted children, lived in the old mansion, and went missing before any of us were born...right?"

Pence nodded. "Right."

"Sora said that Ansem's name was familiar to him," Roxas added, "Even though he doesn't remember anything about his past."

"Maybe we'll jog his memory if we find something," Olette suggested. "Let's get started."

* * *

**Threat level increasing. CommencKKKRRRSSSHHHH.**

**Prototype regulation failed. Critical error.**

**Danger. Assimilation commencing.**

* * *

Roxas was just hitting the enter button when he felt a sudden bout of dizziness. Shaking it off, he hit the enter button on google in search of any information on Ansem the Wise. The results were few, and many of the links were referring to irrelevant things. Only one caught his eye.

_Ansem the Wise, well-known scientist and engineer, has not been seen since last weekend when he attended the grand opening of Station Heights Train Station. His adopted children have not been seen either._

_Authorities have made efforts to investigate Nevras mansion, but no success has been made on passing through even the front gates. If anyone has any information on the wherabouts of Ansem the Wise or his children, please notify the Twilight Town Police Department immediately. (See picture below)_

The said picture, however, was a broken link. Roxas folded his arms in annoyance and checked the properties of the photo; maybe they made a typo in the link...nope, perfectly normal. At least now he knew when exactly this Ansem person disappeared. According to the article, however, his children had not been seen either. If he'd been missing for over fifteen years, then his children were probably at least in their twenties now, but since _they_ hadn't been seen either... Boy, wasn't this confusing.

Futher searching was fruitless, and the group left the library early in favor of doing something far less stressful: eating ice cream atop the clocktower. Sora wasn't too keen on it at first, but he willingly went along after a quick bit of encouragement courtesy of Olette. Though the boy was quite hesitant on climbing up, once they reached the top his fear seemed to evaporate.

_The view from up here is really beautiful,_ Sora commented.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah."

"This is the only place that Seifer can't get to," Hayner said proudly, waving his half-done popsicle in the air as though to prove his point. "It's a tradition for us to come eat sea-salt ice cream up here at the end of the day."

Sora gave the popsicle in his own hand an odd look. _So that's what this is called. It's pretty good._

Nibbling at his own snack, Roxas spared a glance at Hayner. "So, you ready for that tournament yet, Hayner?"

As expected, the blonde was pumped. "You bet I am!" Hayner replied, grinning widely. "You're entering this year too, right?"

"Of course I am," Roxas replied.

"You remember our plan, right? We both make it to the finals, and then no matter who wins, we still get the prize."

Sora glanced up. _There's a tournament?_

Roxas nodded. "It's called Struggle. Hayner and I got through the preliminaries this year, so we're both in the final rounds two days from now."

_What's the prize?_

"The four crystal trophy, a chance to fight last year's defending champion, and ten thousand munny."

_Wow. Maybe I should enter._

Roxas bit his lip and shook his head. "It's too late to enter. The preliminaries were a month or so ago."

Olette must have caught on to their conversation, and she leaned forward a little to add in. "You can always enter next year."

Smiling, Sora went back to his ice cream and stared at the sunset. _I think I will. For now though, I'll be fine with just cheering you two._

Even though Sora seemed cheerful, Roxas somehow knew that there was something bothering him. He wasn't sure if it was the glazed-over look in Sora's eyes or the weakness in the smile he was trying to give them. Something just seemed...off. Another bout of dizziness approached, and he found himself leaning back to avoid falling off the tower. After a moment it passed, and he stared at the sunset again. "So, Sora...where're you going to stay?"

Sora shrugged. _I can't go back to the mansion._

"Why not?" Roxas asked. Sora shook his head and refused to reply. Even when everyone glanced at Roxas for a translation, he could only shrug.

"Why not stay in the Usual Spot?" Olette suggested. "If you're worried about being found, no one goes there except us."

Pence nodded in agreement. "That sounds pretty good. What do you think, Sora?"

_Sounds good to me,_ Sora replied, smiling.

Roxas returned his gaze to the sunset, and was about to speak when yet another bout of dizziness took him over. Rubbing his head, he pushed himself up. "I think I'm gonna head home, guys. Not feeling too well."

Sora gave Roxas a concerned stare, but managed to work up a smile. _Get some rest, okay?_

The blonde blinked at Sora. "Why the sudden concern?"

Apparently just as surprised on the subject as Roxas was, Sora just shrugged in reply.

The walk home was lonesome and silent. Roxas took the long way home in order to avoid the Sandlot, and the dizziness only got worse. He was more than happy to finally go to bed, where he promptly fell asleep.

* * *

"_It's absorbing the natural energy in this house…or rather, it seems to be _assimilating_ it."_

"_Assimilating? But the only ones capable of that are-"_

"_Correct," the older man theorized. "There's a friend of mine at the edge of town that may know more, but I'm afraid I've been unable to reach him as of late. His own residence is far more...protected than this one. If my friend agreed to keep it, then it would be of no danger to anyone."_

_The younger of the two shook his head. "I don't like this."_

_The older man shook his head. "I realize how you feel. However, we would be putting the entire town in danger if it were to remain somewhere unprotected."_

"_The city will be...?"_

"_No, the town itself will be fine. It's the people that I'm worried about. Assimilation holds more danger with its end results rather than what happens during the process. Judging by how quickly the energy in this mansion is vanishing, I'd say that the prototype is far more dangerous than we anticipated. It must be contained at all costs. If not, then it will have to be destroyed."_

"_But-"_

"_No excuses. I know it will be hard for you, but we must do whatever we can to ensure the safety of Twilight Town."_

_The younger person clenched his hand into a tight fist, to the point where his arm shook. Roxas could feel the anger coming off of this person. For some reason, it frightened him. When the younger boy left, Roxas caught a look at his face: he couldn't make it out clearly, but it still seemed so familiar somehow. He swallowed. "What's going on?"_

"_Nothing you need to worry about," the boy replied. "Dad's...not letting us out of the house for a while."_

"_Why not?" Roxas asked._

_The boy shook his head. "It's hard to explain. You don't need to worry, though. Everything's going to be okay."_

"_Promise?"_

"_Promise."_


	4. Fabled Countryside

Whew, it sure took long enough. Here's chapter four, one in which I am a bit reluctant to release, but I didn't want to leave you people hanging for too long (plus it was already bordering three thousand words anyway). As my profile page states, I am indeed a busy person now, and I'm sorry I can't update any faster. Writer's block isn't helping me any, either D:

Anyway. Enjoy!

**Prototype**

**By FlikFreak**

**Chapter Four: Fabled Countryside**

* * *

Roxas woke up feeling particularly groggy, and the dizzying sensation returned for a moment. The dream was still clear in his memory. He recognized the room as the dining room in the old mansion, only it was in much better condition. The boy that passed by so closely was also so familiar to him, hey he couldn't make out his face clearly. That dream...could it have been linked to the mansion's past?

Rubbing his head, Roxas dismissed the thought and pushed open his window, staring outside at the flock of birds that swept past. After getting dressed and grabbing some breakfast, he headed straight for the usual spot. Like usual, he was early, and Sora was sitting on the sofa, staring at the ground oddly. When he noticed Roxas's arrival, he glanced up and waved. _Morning._

"Good morning," Roxas replied. "Were the others here earlier?"

Sora shook his head. _No. They haven't come yet._ He went back to staring at the floor. _Hey, Roxas...could you do me a favor today?_

This was new. Roxas tilted his head, shrugging. "That depends, I guess."

_Well, I should probably explain first. See, this morning, right before I woke up, I felt part of my memory come back._

Hesitation. Roxas recalled that Sora had mentioned having no memory of his past. Maybe being asleep for so long kept him from recalling it right away. If so, it probably wasn't something serious that prevented him; only sleep. "Really? What'd you remember?"

_Not much. There was also this old man that I knew. He lived away from town, and we had to take a special train to see him. He was a good friend of my family; he might know something about me._

"It's a start," Roxas replied. "Are you going to go see him today?"

At those words, Sora shifted uneasily. _Actually, I was hoping you would go with me._

Roxas felt uneasy at this. Once again, Sora was singling him out. But what for? It wasn't that he seemed suspicious, but Roxas simply couldn't discern why Sora picked him of all people. Maybe it had something to do with them being able to communicate like they did. He rubbed his arm. "Well, I don't think it'd be a good idea to just leave everyone here without telling them where we went. Besides, I don't feel comfortable keeping secrets from them."

_I'll leave them a a note. Besides, we can always tell them about it when we get back._

Hearing this, Roxas began to protest that he could just bring everyone with them, but Sora seemed firm about his decision to only bring Roxas. He sighed. "Alright, but we can't stay gone for long, okay?"

Sora smiled brightly. _Got it. Follow me._

It turned out that Sora hadn't wanted Roxas to follow him to another house, but all the way across town. By some twist of luck, they made it to the train station in record time, where Sora immediately led him past the ticket stand to an old, violet train. Roxas bit his lip. "We have to take a train to see him?"

_It's not as far as you think,_ Sora insisted. _And don't worry about buying tickets. Come on._

Reluctantly, Roxas followed Sora as he pushed open the door to the train and stepped in. The inside of the train wasn't nearly as ancient-looking as the outside, and the seats were actually very comfortable. It was only when the door closed that Roxas noticed that they were the only ones on board. "...Sora? Who runs this train?"

Sora either didn't hear him or ignored him. Currently he was leaning against the door, looking wistfully outside of the window. Only then did Roxas recall a story that Pence had told him once.

"_There's an old urban legend about a Ghost Train. It runs past the beach, and you can see it from Sunset Hill. There's no driver, no conductor, no passengers...NO RETURN."_

_Hayner rolled his eyes. "Cut the dramatics, Pence. So it's a ghost train. Has anyone ever gotten on it?"_

_Pence furrowed his eyebrows for a moment. "I dunno. The story only started coming up around the time Ansem the Wise was getting all that attention for adopting those kids. I asked the people at the train station about it, but they said that they don't know anything about a train that runs by itself. They said it's impossible."_

"_Maybe Ansem came up with some new technology?" Olette offered._

_Pence shook his head. "If he did, then why would they not use it now?"_

"_Because it makes people like you ramble on about it like it's some supernatural occurrence," Hayner retorted with a hidden smirk._

Roxas suddenly realized that he was aboard the train in question, and shot to his feet in alarm. He had to make it to the exit. If what Pence said was right-

_Sit down,_ Sora said, noticing him. _We're about to go._

Unfortunately for Roxas, Sora's warning came too late and he ended up falling awkwardly to the floor as the train took off from the station. Sora made a chuckling movement, and Roxas felt his face turn red as he righted himself and held onto one of the iron bars. "Thanks for the warning," he muttered, but after a few seconds he couldn't help but crack a smile, too.

* * *

**Prototype Stimulation approaching high levels. Assimilation speed increaKKKRRRSSSHHHH.**

**Prorotype location unidentified. Scanning...**

**Scan complete. Prototype location unknown. Assimilation entering Standby Mode.**

**Error.**

* * *

Roxas could hardly believe what he saw when he stepped off the train. Not only did the sky look like someone threw a bucketload of auroras in it (which made it look beautiful, mind you, but it also threw him for quite a loop), but they were on a floating chunk of land in the middle of what strongly reminded him of outer space. When he turned toward the train, it vanished behind him. 'No return' indeed. "S-Sora..."

_Don't worry,_ Sora replied with a reassuring smile._ When we're ready to go back, it'll show up again._

Though he considered asking Sora how he knew such a fact, Roxas began to realize that he wasn't quite ready to return. He was curious, he inwardly admitted, about whoever lived in the strangely-shaped tower before them. Sighing, he turned to follow Sora.

The inside of the structure was definitely much larger than what the outside had implied. While Roxas was astounded by this fact, Sora didn't seem set off at all, and simply began heading up the stairs and gesturing Roxas to follow closely. _Don't worry. It's safe._

"That's not what I was worried about," Roxas replied, still staring at his surroundings. There were pillars lining the walls and the floor was made of stone. At the foot of the railway for the stairs were odd cone-like shapes decorated with crescent moons and stars.

_Come on. We don't want to keep him waiting for too long._

Nodding absently, Roxas headed up the stairs after Sora. It wasn't long before the stairway shifted entirely, forming a stereotypical staircase that one would see in a medieval tower: made from stone, with large brick walls all around them. The main difference, however, was the fact that the stairs seemed to be _floating in midair_. Not only that, but now the tower seemed even _bigger_.

The stairs seemed to go on forever, and Roxas had to pause a few times to catch his breath. It wasn't helped that twice on the way up, they seemed to reach doors to rooms that he hadn't even seen before...rooms once again decorated with crecent moons and stars. Whoever built this place must've had a thing for astronomy...and heights. Finally, they reached a straight set of stairs before arriving at the final door, which was decorated with a shape similar to what rested at the very bottom of the staircase (which, by now, felt like it was miles away). It was at this point that Sora stopped.

_Before we go in, _Sora began, _Just remember to be polite, okay? He was a friend of my family and all, but he's really high up, if you get what I mean._

Roxas crossed his arms. "Kinda like one of those people you just don't question?"

Sora nodded. _Yeah. A lot like that._

"Okay," Roxas replied. "I'll just...stay quiet, I guess."

_That works too,_ Sora shrugged, pushing open the door and walking in.

The room beyond had several shelves full of books. One shelf had a number of journals, and there was even a small chalkboard tucked away in one corner, along with several pots. In the center of the room, however, stood a table and a large, skinny chair, in which sat a blue-robed man with a familiar pointed hat (the same shape on the stairwell and the door, Roxas later realized) and long, gray beard. His eyes were as mysterious as the tower itself, and seemed to bore right into Roxas's soul. Sora bowed respecfully before the man without hesitation. _Greetings, Master Yen Sid._

The amount of reverence in Sora's thoughts was immence. After initial surprise at this, Roxas turned to repeat Sora's statement to Yen Sid, but hesitated when the man nodded. "It has been a while since I last saw you, Sora."

And at that, Roxas blinked. Then he gawked. Then he realized his rudeness and closed his mouth again to speak normally. "Y-You can hear him?" And there went his temporary vow of silence.

Yen Sid gave Roxas what seemed to be a scathing look, but he nodded all the same. "Yes. In a place such as this, it is possible."

_Why is that, sir?_ Sora asked.

"There are several powerfal wards that I have set upon my tower," the man replied. "With this comes a great aura that suppresses some power and magnifies others. The force that grants you telepathy is magnified here, allowing me to hear you."

Sora nodded. _That's how you can hear me?_

"Correct. There are other effects from this as well. You may have noticed, Roxas, that your previous fatigue has left you."

"Yeah, you're right. I don't-" Roxas couldn't stop the gawk this time, cutting himself off when the old wizard's words hit him. "Wait, how do you know my name?! And how did..."

Yen Sid gave an amused grin, but didn't answer the question. "So, tell me why you are here, Sora."

The explanation was shorter than Roxas had anticipated. Sora recited the story of how Roxas had found him in the mansion, and how he had only been able to speak to Roxas and him alone and how his memories were gone and only one had come back to him. All through it, Yen Sid listened carefully. Once finished, the old man crossed his hands. "So I see. It is how I predicted..."

Yet another strange oddity about this man. This time, however, Sora spoke up. _What is it, sir?_

There was a moment's hesitation, and Yen Sid looked worried very briefly. "There is not much I can do for you, Sora. If it's your memories you're worried about, you need not fret over that. They will come back to you gradually. As for the rest..."

_There's more?_ Sora asked.

Roxas was about to say the same thing, but he closed his mouth when Sora voiced his own thoughts (well, sort of) and nodded. Sora only really seemed more concerned with his loss of memories. Nothing else really bothered him, not even the loss of voice. Roxas himself remained silent, knowing that it was Sora that wanted to speak about this the most. The question again rose in his mind, however...why him?

"You have power, Sora," Yen Sid replied. "You may not remember, due to your time asleep in Nevras Mansion. This power will return to you, Sora, along with everything else you have lost. However, I must warn you that there are dangers to this that you may not anticipate."

Sora swallowed so hard it was audible. _...what kind of dangers, sir?_

Yen Sid weaved his fingers together. "It is nothing serious at first," he began, "But eventually, if you do not learn to control this power, Roxas will be the one to suffer."

Roxas started. "M-Me? What do I have to do with this!? I just..."

The mere glance that Yen Sid gave Roxas silenced him, but thankfully the man didn't seem angry. "Roxas, you and Sora are strongly connected to one another through invisible ties. While this may be an aid to both of you, it will also place you in great danger."

_I'll protect Roxas,_ Sora said firmly, _No matter what it takes._

This news caught Roxas by surprise, but Yen Sid did not look quite so relieved. "That may be very well, Sora, but in your current state, that very protection could be the danger that I speak of."

Sora blinked, taken aback. _How? How is protecting someone hurting them?_

Yen Sid shook his head. "I cannot say. My apologies, Sora. I wish very much to tell you more, but knowledge can be a dangerous thing to have, even to the one that deserves to know it most."

_But what should I do?_ Sora protested. _I wanna know who I am! I can't just sit around and wait for it to come to me! What if something happens and I don't know how to fix it? And what about this power? How can I know how to protect someone from myself?! You can't just--_

"Calm down," Roxas cried, shocked at Sora's outburst and doing all he could to keep from clutching his head. Something trickled into the back of his mind: anger, despairation, vehemence, confusion, all rolled up in one and threatening to crush him.

After merely two moments, there was a surge of _something_ in the air and Sora ceased his telepathic rampage, and Roxas felt the weight in his mind lifting. Sora was gasping for breath, and Yen Sid had stood, making himself appear quite intimidating. "I do not blame you for your confusion," he said softly, "But you must understand that I do this for your own good, Sora. I cannot hold your hand through this; you must find your way to your memories on your own."

Sora's shoulders drooped. _...I understand, sir. I'm sorry._

"There is no need to apologize, Sora. Do you have anything else you wish to ask me?"

_No, sir. I think I know enough for now._

After a few awkward farewells, they began to leave. Roxas could tell that Sora had been discouraged somewhat by Yen Sid's advice and warnings, but somehow he knew his friend would persevere. He was about to step out the door when he felt his legs freeze where he was.

"Roxas. A moment, if you don't mind."

Sora glanced back in confusion, but Roxas shook his head. "Go on. I'll catch up."

_If you say so._ Sora headed down the stairs.

Satisfied, Roxas turned back to Yen Sid. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

Yen Sid nodded calmly. "Yes. I believe you've been having strange dreams recently?"

Roxas froze. "You...know about that? How?"

"It would do you well to be cautious," The old man continued, ignoring Roxas's question. "Do not tell him this, but these dreams are a result of your connection to Sora."

"But how am I connected to him?" Roxas asked. "All I did was wake him up... I think."

Once again, Yen Sid took his seat and wove his fingers together. "I see. Well then, Roxas, I suggest you pay particularly close attention to those dreams of yours. Though your friends may be aware of Sora's plight, it would be wise not to involve anyone else in this if possible...and keep an eye out for someone wearing a black cloak. He is neither an ally nor enemy unless you so dictate it through your actions."

It was a strange suggestion, and Roxas couldn't see what it had to do with his current situation. Regardless, he nodded respectfully, giving a proper farewell and exiting the tower, pondering Yen Sid's words as he went.


	5. Shattered Reality

**Prototype**

**By FlikFreak**

**Chapter Five: Shattered Reality**

* * *

Sure enough, the train had reappeared like Sora said it would. The ride home was as surreal as the ride to the tower, and at times Roxas felt like he wanted to just go back and look at the beautiful sky forever. He ended up leaning against one of the windows to stare outside, and Sora took a seat right across from him. Eventually, the silence was too much, and Roxas decided to speak. "So that guy was a family friend?"

_I think so,_ Sora replied. _In my memory, there was a man talking about him. I think that man was my dad, so..._

"So you assumed that he was a family friend?"

_Yeah. Turns out I was wrong, but I was still pretty close. He helped me, so that's what matters._

Roxas rolled his eyes. "He didn't help you, Sora. He told you that you just had to sit and wait for it to come back to you."

_I know,_ Sora replied, shaking his head. _But he still told me some important stuff. I'm kinda worried, though...what about this power that I have? And how does it put you in danger if I protect you? How am I supposed to protect anyone from myself, anyway?_

The question caused Roxas to bite his lip. Maybe that very power was why Sora was locked away in Nevras Mansion. But Yen Sid had also stated (although indirectly) that if Sora could control this power, then he wouldn't have to worry about that. Maybe he could help Sora learn about whatever abilities he might have, and perhaps learn more about the mansion along the way...

The hissing sound of the door opening popped Roxas's thoughts like a soap bubble, and he warily stepped out onto the platform, followed closely by Sora. Roxas blinked a few times. "It's still morning?" He muttered. "How long were we gone?"

"Roxas! Sora!"

Olette's voice caught both boys off guard. She ran toward them, not bothering to close the door behind her, her face ridden with confusion and fright. Roxas rubbed his head. "Um, Sora, didn't you say you left them a note-"

"You have to hide!" Olette cried, interrupting Roxas. "There are monsters!"

_What?!_

Almost on cue, the glass entranceway to the station shattered, spilling glass fragments across the entire entrance. Olette screamed and shielded herself, while Roxas spun on his heels and ducked down. Sora, on the other hand, grabbed both of them and pulled them back. They managed to avoid the blast for the most part, but the fear didn't ebb until every last shard finally hit the ground. Roxas pushed himself to his feet a bit after Olette and Sora did, his eyes wide. "What was that?"

_I dunno,_ Sora replied, _But I'm going to find out._ With that, he took off running.

Olette reached out with one hand, but Sora was too fast. "Sora! Wait! They're still-"

Her words didn't reach Sora. Worried, Roxas took off after his friend. "Get in the ticket stand, Olette!" He shouted over his shoulder. "No one will find you there as long as you're quiet!" He didn't bother looking back to see if she complied as he ran.

* * *

**Prototype Location confirmed. Station Heights district. Assimilation resumed.**

**Current Assimilation Level: Twelve percent. Assimilation level rising.**

* * *

Roxas barely managed to keep up with Sora as he took off down Market Street. He found the boy coming to a halt in Tram common, near the entrance to the mansion. There were no "monsters" to be seen, but Sora was still standing his guard. Roxas hesitated several yards away, noticing how poised Sora was, ready to strike at any given moment. It was unlike him, almost, but he seemed as though he had done it for years. When Roxas began to approach, he was met with a sharp stiffness in his legs all of a sudden...something preventing hm from moving.

_Don't. Stay put._

The seriousness in Sora's tone alarmed Roxas. For one, Sora hadn't even seen Roxas. Maybe his telepathy stretched that far? Secondly, how was Roxas suddenly unable to move? Was Sora doing that?

Roxas never got his answer. There was a dark, whirring noise, and he felt himself stepping back in alarm. Sora, however, didn't budge. Not even when black puddles began forming on the ground, rising up and forming crudely humanoid monsters with wavering antennae. Roxas gasped, his legs still locked in place. "What are-"

_Run!_

The warning came too late. One of the beasts noticed Roxas and lunged at him at top speed. The feeling came back to his legs, but he felt the claws of the beast slash across his face. Somehow the pain was not in his skin, but it threatened to crush something within him. He screamed a blood-curdling cry before the sound of steel meeting the flesh of the monster resounded in his ears.

_I said run! Hurry, before more of them show up!_

He didn't argue. Roxas scrambled to his feet and took off toward the sandlot. Though the footsteps of more of the beasts were silent, he could still hear them catching up. He had just made it to the ramp down to the sandlot when one caught up and leapt into the air, catching his shoulders and pinning him to the ground. There was another slash, this time directly across the chest. It didn't rip his shirt or jacket, but this time the pain was even stronger...so strong that Roxas couldn't even scream.

The beast's eyes narrowed and he spread his claws, plunging them into Roxas's chest. This time, he _did _scream, but his voice failed to escape his throat. Voices began to scream in his mind in broken sentences.

"_--don't get out of here soon, then he'll--"_

"_--are a danger to those around you, whether you intend to be or--"_

"_--not my real brother, but that doesn't mean you're not--"_

"_--can't close it! They just—"_

"_If you do in there--"_

"_--can't let anyone else suffer because of--"_

"_You could die!"_

"_I can't--"_

"_Why is--"_

"_Why can't I--"_

Darkness. It was everywhere. Roxas saw flashes of images. The mansion, flickering between its previous state and its current state of disrepair. The pod where Sora was, flickering to a view from within the pod. A stained glass platform. Colorful and vibrant, yet fragile. The image of Sora sleeping drawn in it. Then, the image of a dark room. A swirling, black light within its depths. A blurry figure standing in front of it, kneeling on the ground, gasping for breath. He began to make out details. Sweat rolling down his face, chest heaving. A voice cried out to the blurry figure. Roxas knew that voice. It was--

"Roxas! Wake up!"

Slowly, Roxas opened his eyes and came back to his senses. The light blurred his vision. Sound was dampened from his ears, and seemed far away. His energy seemed to have left him, leaving him dazed and fatigued.

As his vision cleared, he could make out the familiar form of Sora hovering over him. _Come on, Roxas. Hang in there!_

"Is he alright?"

It was Olette. She was here, too?

There was movement. Finally, Roxas could see a bit more clearly. Sora was indeed hovering over him, and Olette indeed stood nearby with Pence and Hayner. There were posters of the clocktower, he was beginning to feel the soft green sofa under him...when had he arrived in the usual spot? Had someone taken him there? His eyes slid shut again, fatigue threatening to throw him into darkness again, but his ears barely clung to consciousness.

"He's barely moving. What happened to him, Sora?"

"Pence, Sora can't speak to us. He doesn't have a voice, remember?"

"Wait...what is it, Sora? Do yo—hey! Don't grab my arm like that!"

"Don't pull away like that, Hayner. It's rude."

"Yeah, well, I could have gotten an advance warning or something."

Roxas felt something warm press against his chest. His nerves still tingled a little from his attempt to awaken, and he couldn't quite make out what the object was, but it was comforting somehow. When nothing happened, the object pressed a bit harder.

"What are you...ah...whoa, what the..."

"Hayner? What's going on?"

A burst of warmth entered his chest, and Roxas felt his eyes opening again. The flow of warmth ceased after a moment, and Roxas felt his senses return fully. As his vision cleared, Roxas could see Sora above him, releasing a tight grip on Hayner's arm and sighing in relief. _You're awake._

"What happened?" Roxas muttered, forcing himself to sit up.

"That's what we wanna know," Pence replied, looking thoroughly confused. "Sora ran in here carrying you about ten minutes ago."

Roxas blinked, rubbing his eyes. Ten minutes? But he hadn't been out for that long. It was only a moment or two, when all of those voices and images raced past him...

"Sora's been hovering over you ever since he got here," Hayner added, still looking dazed. "He couldn't tell us anything so you'd probably be better off asking him."

Sighing, Roxas turned to Sora. "Um, Sora...I know we're not supposed to involve too many people, but we can trust them, right?"

Sora nodded eagerly. _Of course we can._

"Then could you tell me what happened back there?"

_Those were monsters called Heartless. They're not supposed to be here._

"Heartless?" Roxas echoed.

"What's he saying?" Pence asked.

Roxas shifted uncomfortably. "He said that those things attacking town were called Heartless. They're monsters that don't belong here."

Ignoring the group's shocked reactions, Sora continued, with Roxas hesitantly repeating his statements for his friends to hear. _I thought they didn't exist. I read about them a lot, I was even taught about them. When they attack people, they don't break bones or anything. They attack your heart. If I hadn't made it to you on time, well...you wouldn't be here right now. I'm just glad you're okay._

So that was why Roxas had felt no pain on his skin. His heart was being clawed at instead. He bit his lip as he remembered the familiar-yet-unfamiliar things that were in his mind in the short ten minutes that he had passed out. He had felt so drained when he came to. Did the monster do that? Or was it something else?

_Those monsters sapped your energy, too, _Sora added._ I had to borrow some of Hayner's to wake you up._

"You did _what_?!"

Sora waved his hands defensively. _D-Don't worry, it's totally harmless! Energy naturally regenerates, but you were moving really slow and I got worried. Hayner seems to regenerate it really fast so I picked him._

Roxas glanced at Hayner in concern. Sure enough, he no longer looked off like he had earlier, and returned the stare. "What?"

"Nothing," Roxas lied.

Olette rubbed her arms as though a chill had come over her. "What if those monsters come back?" she said. "I saw Seifer fighting some when I ran to the train station, but..."

_I don't know,_ Sora replied, even though Olette couldn't hear him, and he hung his head. _I really don't know... If they come back, they might hurt Roxas._

The incertainty that Sora felt was almost tangible. Roxas felt a weight on his shoulders pushing him down. "I"m going home," he muttered, walking away and dragging his feet as he went. The weight only became more intense.

* * *

**Complete Assimilation imminent. Prototype control node failure.**

**Analomy detected in Station Heights district. Threat level: High. Chance to spread to Sunset District: High.**

"Figures I'd come back to a mess like this. What chance do we have of cleaning this up?"

**Resistance Level to Beta: Ninety-Six Percent.**

**Resistance Level to Prototype: Twenty-Seven Percent. Level subject to change with assimilation.**

**Combined Resistance Level: Fifteen Percent. Level subject to change with assimilation.**

"Guess I'd better get to work. Where's the highest concentration of threat?"

**User Identified.**

"...what?"

**Renouncing all authorization. Launching security protocol. Preparing control nodes.**

"Oh, no you don't!"

**Beta Control Node launched. Initiating se—KKKRRRSSSHHH.**

**Beta Control Node cannot be found.**

**Prototype Control Node cannot be found.**

**Error 6472.**

**Warning.**

**Warning.**

**Warning.**

* * *

"_You found what in the basement?"_

_Once again, Roxas was peeking out from behind the doorway. Two blurry figures stood speaking...the same as before._

"_There was a portal. I think it leads to that place that he read about in the book."_

_The man in the chair sat back. "If that is true, then we indeed have a situation on our hands. That was not a portal that you saw. It was a gate."_

_The younger of the two perked up. "A gate?"_

"_Yes. It leads to a world close to our own...a world that should not exist. This mansion was named after the world beyond that gate."_

"_Nevras Mansion was named after an entire different world? But wait, that means..."_

"_Correct. You are from another world entirely...just like your friend."_

"_He's not just my friend now, Ansem, he's-"_

"_I know," Ansem interrupted. "He's like a brother to you. That is why we need to close that gate before anyone in the city is harmed."_

"_But how are we going to do--"_

_There was a crashing sound, and Roxas found himself racing into the room, diving at the younger of the two strangers and shoving him out of the way of a stream of black. One of the beasts appeared on the table before them before leaping into the air lunching forward again, its claws reaching for Roxas's heart. There was no time to dodge. They sliced across his chest, causing Roxas to scream in pain and fall back. In a swirl of black, a long object appeared in the younger stranger's hand and swatted the monster away. Another appeared at the side, and another, and another. Soon the room was full of them. Voices began to whisper in Roxas's mind, louder and louder, hissing remarks about some sort of light and a world and being locked away and starving and how angry they were. He sunk downward, clutching his skull with his hands as the voices reached a level so loud that he thought he wouldn't be able to handle any more..._

* * *

Roxas woke up with a scream half-way out his throat, his body shooting bolt upright in bed. The scream caught in his throat and never escaped, thankfully enough, keeping his parents from hearing him. Slightly thankful that he wasn't heard, he checked the clock. Ten in the morning...he should have been up an hour ago. The struggle tournament was supposed to be today. He yawned, still tired, and immediately rubbed his neck. Strange. Why did his throat hurt?

Brushing it off as something he could deal with later, Roxas pushed himself out of bed. After getting dressed in record time and nabbing a packet of poptarts on his way out, he headed straight for the Usual Spot, hoping to find Hayner and the others there. When he arrived, however, only Sora was there, lying in the most awkward position on the couch. Roxas opened his mouth to greet him, but for some reason no words came out. He blinked, rubbing his throat a few times before stepping forward.

Sora must have heard him, because he yelped and fell right off the bed. Roxas would have laughed, but the laugh wouldn't come either. Instead, he just watched as the spiky-haired brunette sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "Geez, you didn't have to sneak up on me Rox--"

It took both of them all of two seconds to realize what had just happened. Sora l;eapt to his feet, a bright smile on his face and his eyes wide with excitement. "Roxas!" He cried. "I can talk now! Isn't that great? You won't have to translate for me anymore, and..."

But Roxas could only stare back, dumbfounded. He wanted to congratulate his friend, but he couldn't get the words to come out of his mouth. His throat ached, feeling abnormally empty. Roxas rubbed his throat, eyebrows furrowed, wondering what could possibly be wrong.

Sora pulled back, worried. "Roxas…? Roxas, what's wrong?"

He didn't know; he couldn't answer the question even if he wanted to. He just shook his head, baffled. Then, somehow, it struck him like a lightning bolt.

Roxas had lost his voice.


End file.
